


It's Hard to Dance With the Devil on Your Back

by elsaa



Category: All For the Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Modern with Magic, Angst and Fluff and Smut, Anxiety Disorder, Cats, Established Relationship, F/F, F/M, Implied/Referenced Abuse, M/M, Magic-Users, Magical Bond, Multi, Panic Attacks, Road Trips, so much fluff and so much angst, this is by riko to kevin and by Neil's mother to Neil
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-03
Updated: 2016-05-09
Packaged: 2018-06-06 02:31:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,568
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6734356
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elsaa/pseuds/elsaa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's burying it down and looking over your shoulder and running away. It's fire and air and a center to keep them together. It's leaving the past behind and forging something better. </p><p>(basically it’s kandreil, but like magical kandreil.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> OK SO QUICK RUN DOWN OF THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW FOR THIS AU WE'VE PUT TOGETHER:  
> There's mages and praelia!! We're gonna explain the difference to you in the fic!! Things you need to know: All mages have an elemental affinity. Two mages with the same affinity do not necessarily have the same powers. The stronger the mage and the more they accept their magic, the more potent the affinity. Other things about magic will be explained in the fic!!
> 
> Kevin and Neil are mages!! Andrew is a praelia!! They are bonded!! This means lots of things which you will discover in the fic!!I
> 
> It’s been 5 years since Andrew met Kevin and 4 since they met neil and it’s been 3 since they’ve been together. These are more things which will be explained further in the fic!! They have still things to work through, but they got time to develop their relationship because things were pretty peaceful for that period. 
> 
> Now it's time for them to go to shit. There will be ANGST, there will be FLUFF, there will be SMUT. There will be a lot of sass because Neil Josten can't close his mouth for more then two minutes at a time. 
> 
> Another thing: this fic is co-authored so you might see some changes in style and stuff? We've smoothed it out the best we could, so hopefully you won't notice it but if you do hopefully you dont mind!
> 
> If you've got any questions or stuff either drop a comment either or see our askboxes (thepackwantsthed.tumblr.com or deklanslynch.tumblr.com) on tumblr!

When Kevin woke up, he was the only one in the bed.

The whole apartment crinkled with magic, but Kevin could feel the distinct flavor of Neil’s magic. Everything around him felt light and airy. He could feel a soft breeze drifting through the room, cool air brushing gently against his face, and taste the sea salt on his tongue even though there wasn’t an ocean for miles.

Peeling his eyes open, Kevin found him right away.

The doors leading out to the apartment’s balcony were wide open. Neil was leaning against the railing, his arms folded and resting on top of it, wearing nothing but the basketball shorts he’d worn to bed. A cigarette hung loosely from his fingers. Neil was moving one of his fingers lazily, using his magic to direct the smoke into different shapes. Kevin watched it form into a small flower, a teddy bear, and a smiling sun in quick succession and figured he was probably playing around for the sake of the elementary school kids that would be walking to school.

“Hey,” Kevin said. His voice was soft from sleep. “Where’s Andrew?”

Neil turned his head, looking at Kevin instead of the world outside their apartment. His lips crooked up in a small smile. He flicked his finger towards Kevin.

“Morning, sleepy head,” Neil said, a teasing lit to his voice. Kevin was always the last one out bed. The smoke followed the path he’d directed, slithering over to Kevin and curling around him briefly. Kevin wanted to be irritated, cigarette smoke was so incredibly unhealthy, but the heat of the smoke called to his own magic and eased his frown. “Andrew is in the shower.”

Kevin snorted, “And you’ve doomed us to a cold shower? Andrew’s self destructiveness is rubbing off on you.”

“According to Andrew, I have a horizontal learning curve so maybe I just never learn,” said Neil. His voice was thoughtful as if he was pondering the truth of his own statement. Maybe he was. Neil wasn’t a liar by nature, but he’d become one. “Let’s not pretend that you’ll wake up early enough to have the first shower anyways.”

Kevin was not amused, “Fuck you.” But there wasn’t any real heat too it, not like before when the words were laced with a venom so potent Neil was lucky words couldn’t kill.

“I’m sure you’d like to,” said Neil. He wasn’t even looking at Kevin, just furling the smoke air all around them. He didn’t deal well with being idle, but then again neither could Kevin. >

“It’s too early for this,” Kevin said. He turned his head, enough to press his cheek a little further into his pillow without losing sight of Neil. The smoke followed him down, a soft caress against his cheek that reminded Kevin of kisses ghosted against his skin the night before. “Stop that. You know how I feel about that shit.”

Neil gave a soft hum and flicked his finger again. The smoke lifted away from Kevin, snaking it’s way back across the room to Neil. He let it spin around him for a minute before leaning over to extinguish the cigarette in the ashtray that he and Andrew left on the small table outside.

Leaving the bud in the tray, he stepped into the room.

The doors swung shut behind him.

Kevin let out a snort. “You could have just shut the doors yourself, show off.”

“You’re just jealous that you can’t play with fire in the house,” Neil answered.

Kevin raised an eyebrow. He lifted one hand out from under the blankets, letting out enough of his power to spin a ring of fire around it. “Wanna test that theory, Josten?”

Neil grinned, there was something predatory in it, “Ready when you are, Day. Are you sure you’re awake enough? I’d hate for you fall asleep mid-spell.”

Kevin scowled at him, letting the flames snake away from him and towards Neil. They were swatted away by a gust of cold wind before they’d made it half way.

Neil smirked his stance shifting slightly daring him to try again.

The temperature in the room increased by several degrees, before Neil cooled it back down the air swirling around them.

Kevin responded with flames that burned its way across the floor rapidly and wrapped themselves around him. Neil beat them backwards with a powerful gust of air. It reopened the doors to the balcony, knocked the lamp off the bedside table. and sent Kevin tumbling off the bed.

Neil was laughing now.

Kevin was up in an instant and making a sweeping motion with his right arm that sent out a spinning disk of fire. Neil bent backwards and made a twirling motion with his wrist, putting Kevin on his back again.

“ _Invisibilia_ ,” Kevin muttered and he was gone to the world as he pulled himself back to his feet . He teased, “What’s the matter sweetheart can’t see me?”

Neil’s eyes narrowed before his mouth twitched.

Then Kevin saw the air twisting and curling around the room, searching, for him.

It wasn’t long before it found him either. The dust particles in the room outlined his shape.

Then his back was colliding with the wall, the wind knocked from his chest. 

Kevin didn’t move to get up, choosing instead to sit on the floor and glare at Neil. It didn’t seem to affect him much. Neil just stood in the middle of the room, laughing softly.

The door creaked open. Kevin glanced towards it just in time to see the grey blur darting through the open doorway, making it’s way towards him. He barely reacted to the demonic energy coming towards him, so used to this particular demon that it barely phased him.

The cat, King Fluffkins because Nicky had named them and he’d been insistent that their demon status didn’t mean they couldn’t have cat names, leaped into his lap. Kevin winced as the grey tabby prodded around for a minute, tiny feet digging into his thighs, before settling in his lap.

“You need a shower.”

Kevin looked up at the statement to find Andrew standing in the doorway. His hair was still damp from his shower, blonde curling around his ears, but he was dressed already. He wore black cargo shorts, a leather belt pulled through the loops, and a tee-shirt of a slightly darker color. His arm bands were set in place, covering the length of his forearm.

“Andrew’s right,” Neil said, his voice far too amused. “You definitely need a shower, Kevin.”

“Fuck off,” Kevin answered, holding his middle finger up in Neil’s direction. He lifted the cat from his lap, cradling it in his arms, and pushed himself to his feet.

Any other time, he may have waited a while longer before getting in the shower so that he wouldn’t risk it going cold on him, but he could feel the dust and grime from Neil’s spell still clinging to his skin.

“Did you feed the little monsters?” Kevin asked, scratching King Fluffkins behind the ear as he passed Andrew. The cat pushed into the touch, purring gently. Kevin wondered, briefly, how Matt could be so scared of it. King Fluffkins and Sir Fat Cat McCatterson may have been Mage eating demons before, but now days they were mostly harmless.

“No.”

“I’ll do it before I hop in the shower then,” Kevin said. Andrew stepped aside so Kevin could slip out of the bedroom and make his way to the bathroom. 

Despite being able to change the temperature of his body, and the area around him, Kevin could do nothing about the cold water. The water was freezing, and the contrast between his over-hot skin (charged up from his little sparring session) made the whole bathroom fill with steam. Kevin face scrunched slightly and the moisture in the air started to dissipate before it was gone.

Kevin could see himself in the mirror.

The queen chess piece was a welcome sight.

It was progress.

It was hope.

It wasn’t something Kevin would have ever thought he was allowed to have. It was a permanent reminder of what he had now. Neil and Andrew were so different from Riko and there were days when Kevin just didn’t know how to deal with how lucky he had gotten.

Kevin toweled his hair and wrapped a towel snugly around his hips before he opened the door.

It didn’t take Kevin long to get dressed, briefs slung low on his hips covered up by the ostentatiously yellow jogger Neil and Andrew had gotten him as joke. They were the only clean pair of sweats he had. Someone, and it would probably be him, would have to do laundry soon. He grabbed a muscle tee and pulled that on the faint smell of breakfast pulling him towards the kitchen. Despite the intense heat of the outside, the apartment was always on the cooler side courtesy of Neil always circulating the air.

When he got the kitchen Kevin leaned against the wall, taking in the sight of Andrew flipping what appeared to be (and probably were) chocolate chip pancakes. Next to him there was plate of freshly cooked bacon and platter of cut fruits and vegetables, which probably only Kevin would eat. Andrew seemed to be on a mission to pack as much garbage into his body as possible.

“Eating something not made entirely out fat and sugar isn’t going to kill you,” Kevin said, unable to keep quiet any longer. “In fact it might actually do you some good.”

Andrew fixed him with a similar look, “Oh Kevin, you’d think you’d know not to try and change my mind anymore. It’s a pointless exercise.” He flipped another pancake, and then moved over the small stack he already had on a plate next to the bacon.

“Kevin is nothing if not persistent, Andrew. Asking him to stop arguing with you would be like asking him to stop breathing,” said Neil. He moved past Kevin, their shoulders bumping against each other and moved past Andrew to snag a piece of bacon before hopping onto the counter. >>>

“Pot meet kettle,” Andrew said.

Kevin reached over to pluck a few apple slices from the tray. They rested on one of his hands while he reached for them with the other. “Are we supposed to do anything today?”

“Nicky called while you were in the shower,” Neil said. “He said he had a job for us to look into.”

The three of them worked for an agency which utilized the powers that mage-fighter pairs (or trios in their case) had. Sometimes they were finding magical artifacts or helping humans communicate with ghosts. Sometimes they were fighting magical creatures that had gone off the rails.

Nicky was the one who found the Foxes, the group the three of them worked for, their jobs. He was human, but he had enough connections in the world (both magical and non) to make him an indispensable part of their organization.

He was also bonded to a Praelia, Erik Klose, for his protection.

“Does he want us to go down to the office?” Kevin asked. He plucked one of the slices from his hand and bit the tip off. “Or is he just going to email the details?”

“We’re going in,” Neil said. “He told me he wasn’t sure we would want the job and it’d be better to explain in person.”

Kevin let out a small groan. “That doesn’t bode well.”

“Nope,” Neil agreed, popping the p in the word. He gave a large grin. “It sounds like it’ll be fun though.”

“I’m not protecting you if you start another fight,” Andrew said, shooting a significant glance at Neil.

Neil just grinned, aware that Andrew was lying.

Andrew was a Praelia.

Mages might have been one of the highest things on the magical food chain, but they weren’t invincible and just about anything would try to kill them. Stronger than normal humans and magic sensitive enough to see what normal humans couldn’t, Praelia bonded to mages in order to protect them from the dangers of the world around them.

Andrew was bonded to both Kevin and Neil. He wouldn’t let anything hurt them, not even if the fight was caused by Neil’s inability to keep his mouth shut. 

“There’s supposed to be another pit of ghosts on 5th and Jenkins, we could always feed him to them.” Kevin looks away a fained look of bliss on his face. “Things would be much quieter.”

“I’d take you both with me,” was Neil’s response, never riled by anything. If Neil had been the one to make that comment Kevin would been angered, which was part of the reason Neil made half of the comments he made. Kevin was sure it was one of his favourite past times.

Kevin snorted, “You’d try.”

“Are you forgetting who won the fight this morning Kevin? Would you like a rematch?” Neil said. There was spark in his eyes, and his lips started to pull back from his teeth.

Before Kevin could say or cast anything Andrew was turning off the stove.

“Save it for the mission idiots, unless you want to go on one injured,” said Andrew already loading his plate with a stack of pancakes before moving to douse them with syrup. Kevin bit back a cringe and shot Neil an annoyed look before moving to pop two pieces of toast into the toaster.

Andrew was already in the other room but as Neil made to move past he paused behind Kevin. It was split second later that he felt lips mouthing at the sweet stop behind his ear. He wasn’t fast enough to stifle the small sigh of contentment that slipped between his loose lips. Neil’s mouth twitched against his skin and then he was off grabbing bacon for his plate.

Kevin hated (not really) him, but Andrew wouldn’t agree to feeding their boyfriend to ghosts. Kevin would settle for kicking his ass the next time they sparred.

“If don’t stop scowling your face is going to freeze that way.”

“Who ever said you were funny lied to you, Andrew.”

* * *

The Foxhole Court was a little shop in an alleyway. The building was made of dusty orange bricks with moss crawling up them. The doorway was small, but almost always open. Everyone walking by could peer by inside to see the shelves lining the walkway.

With no sign to announce it’s presence, it was the kind of place only those particularly adventurous or in the know found the place.

With the kinds of things they sold, anything from dangerous magical artifacts to incense and herbs that could be used by humans, it was the kind of set-up that worked perfectly.

Kevin led the trio into the store, with Neil following behind him and Andrew bringing up the rear.

The inside of the store was dimly lit. Shelves lined three of the walls, each one filled with items. There was an organized kind of chaos to it. Herbs lined the wall directly to the left of the doorway, but there were no labels or indication as to what they were.

The far wall, all the way across the room, was lined with books. The titles ranged from “A Tale of Two Cities” to “Ghouls and How to Find Them”. To humans without knowledge of magic, it would be nonsense. To mages, it was a valuable resource.

The wall directly to the right of the doorway was filled with a seemingly random collection of items. There were glass jars with decorative pens and colorful pencils sticking out of it, a box filled with masterfully crafted oriental fans, and a pile of soft, folded quilts but there were also beautifully polished skulls and bottles filled with thick liquids that seemed to move on their own.

The final wall of the shop, directly opposite the one lined with herbs, was covered by a large glass display case. The case was filled with everything from thick, leather sheaths to wooden bows with detailed designs carved into them.

A cash register was settled in the very center of the counter. A large wooden door was behind the counter, shut tight.

A girl was standing near the cash register. She wore a bright orange hat on her head, turned so the bill was behind her, and thick black curls peeked out around the edge. Her white tee-shirt molded to her curves and showed off well defined arm muscles. Her jeans were a light blue color and the bottoms of them were tucked into black ankle boots. A boy sat behind her in a chair next to the door. He had the turned the chair so he could straddle it, resting his folded arms on the top and his chin on his arms. His hair was a dark shade of brown and styled into short spikes. He wore an electric blue sweatshirt with dark jean shorts. Both of them had light brown skin, though the girl was just slightly to the lighter side.

“Hey!” the girl called when she saw them. Her lips pulled in a bright smile. “It’s my favorite person!”

“Hey Dan,” Neil greeted.

“Shouldn’t you be more worried about this, Boyd?” Kevin questioned, addressing the boy by the door as Neil made his way to the counter and leaned across it so Dan could wrap him in a tight hug.

“Nah,” Matt dismissed with a small smile. “Neil’s my favorite person too.”

Neil opened his mouth but Kevin cut in before the bromance could start to bloom. He wasn’t in the mood. “Where’s Nicky? He said he might have a job for us.”

Matt jerked his head towards the door, “In the back. But I’m warning you, him and Erik were pretty handsy when they came through a little while ago.”

Of course they were.

The room in the back of the foxhole court was dedicated to Nicky, who fielded all the missions they went on, and Wymack, whom inspected the artifacts and priced them accordingly. The room was dark. There were no windows, but there were bright florescent lights over head. In the back there was a large monitor with different pictures and articles were pulled up. They ranged from ‘unknown location of Hades Helm’ to ‘five new ways to spark your sex life’. The top of someone’s, probably Nicky’s, head could be seen over the top of the chair.

Then there were glass boxes perched on short stone pillars with magical artifacts too rare and powerful to kept up front. In the center was a table made of stone with a glass top, where Wymack was currently inspecting something or another. Erik Klose was on the other side murmuring so quietly that only Andrew could hear what he was saying, not that he cared.  
  
Despite the room being dedicated to Nicky and Wymack off in the back right corner was a fairly large station where Abby Winfield worked. Abby was the resident healer of Foxhole Court, who knit them back together everytime they got themselves ripped apart. The ability to heal was a rare gift, and the foxes were lucky to have her as they could only heal so much. If the wound was to a Praelia the only option was the find a healer, but they were few and far between.

In the back left was a medium sized space for sparring when the pits, a coliseum style arena were mages and Praelia could test their skills, were too full or the foxes just didn’t feel like being around others.

“Dammit Minyard! What have I told you about touching the artifacts? I don’t want to clean your blood off the floor when you get your fucking arm blown off,” Wymack snapped at the short haired blonde. Andrew acted like he couldn’t hear him and kept investigating the artifacts in boxes.

The sudden outburst from Wymack caught Nicky’s attention and he was up and out of the chair. His dark mop of curly hair seemed to block his vision, but didn’t stop him from flashing them a blindingly white smile.

“I was wondering what time you guys would show up. I was hoping it would be soon, though, because Erik and I have lunch reservations for this italian place that just opened up. You know the one on 8th and Park on the corner? It took the place of the tanning salon? It took us forever to get off the waiting list,” Nicky said excitedly causing Neil to give a small laugh. Out the corner of his eye Kevin saw that Andrew was still looking at the artifacts, poking the glass of the ones that seemed to move on their own.

“Thats nice, Nicky,” said Neil, seeming to realise if he didn’t cut Nicky off here they’d be in for a long conversation. “But what’s so special about this mission that we had to come all the way in for the information?”

Kevin’s feelings went from bad to worse when he saw the smile drop from Nicky’s face, as he started to fidget. It seemed that Andrew could sense his cousins nervousness as he abandoned his investigation and moved back over to stand by Kevin and Neil. His presence didn’t seem to sooth Nicky in any way.

“Dr. James Freeman tracked down the Ring of Ammit. It gives whoever wears it the power to trap and control demons. Normally with a find like this he’d leave it alone, doesn't want anyone getting that kind of power. The only problem is there was a mole in his office and now it’s location is out,” said Nicky.

He gestured them over to where the monitor was. He pulled up a photo of golden ring. It didn’t look like much, but most of the artifacts they found didn’t.

“So you want us to get it first,” said Neil, nodding, “but why couldn’t you just email us the information. What else is there?”

Nicky fidgeted more, his eyes darting around not meeting any of their eyes, “There are going to be a lot of other mages and parelia’s there, not just you guys.”

Nicky was silent, he seemed to steeling himself in the silence. Then he spoke, “One of my sources told me that Riko and his new bond mate are going after it as well.” 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyo, Aly here! Thanks for checking in on chapter two!  
> Elsaa and I are super proud of this au and we really hope your enjoying it. I think what we've gotten written - which is about five chapters and 20K thus far - is pretty great.   
> Let us know what you think.   
> Oh! Also, I know Kandreil doesn't show as the main relationship tag anymore due to some kind of misstep on our part (We've trying to fix it, but it keeps booting it back there D:

“No,” Kevin said immediately. Neil saw Andrew shift so he leaned a little closer to Kevin then Neil. “We’re not going.”

 

“Kevin, come on,” Nicky pleaded. “You guys are the only people we have with a proper bond. Matt doesn’t have a Praelia to protect him and you know how he feels about demons. Allison and Renee are great, but their both Praelia and this job is going to require some magic.”

 

“No,” Kevin repeated. His voice was still firm, but Neil could see the way Andrew’s head was tilted towards him. He was listening to the beating of Kevin’s heart, Praelia’s senses were enhanced to a certain degree and the ability was always more powerful when it was focused on the Mage they were bonded to, and Neil saw the barely there downturn of his lips. 

 

Kevin’s heart rate was picking up then. The panic was setting in. 

 

He let himself drift back from the conversation, focusing on the room around them. 

 

Neil always had a low level of awareness to the air in the room with him. It was partly because he had an affinity for air magic and part survival instinct. When he’d been on the run knowing where he could draw power from had been essential. 

 

Now, he focused on the flow of the air through the room in order to help someone other than himself. 

 

The backroom was such a closed off space that it didn’t have nearly as much to work with as other areas did, so Neil had to be careful where he pulled from. If he directed too much from the area where Erik and Wymack were standing, then it would put a strain on Wymack’s lungs. Erik would have been able to handle it, but a human couldn’t handle the same conditions. Taking too much from the area surrounding himself and Nicky would cause the same issue. 

 

Instead of redirecting what was already circulating through the room, Neil focused on the vent and visualized pulling until the air followed his direction. More air came into the room, faster and more if than before. 

 

He directed it towards Kevin, keeping a steady supply of fresh air moving around the other Mage. 

 

It was a trick he’d learned a while ago would help Kevin when he was panicking. Neil wasn’t sure if it was simply having Neil’s magic around him or the excess air that helped, but Kevin always had an easier time breathing through his panic when Neil helped out.

 

For all of Neil’s efforts, it didn’t seem to do much, Kevin’s heart was doing sprints. Neil could feel the temperature in the room start to steadily increase and his breath was becoming audibly more labored. Neil tilted forward and saw the panicked look in Kevin’s eyes, like a wild animal that had been backed into a corner. 

 

Andrew sensed the panic radiating off Kevin in waves and intervened. He moved slowly and snaked an arm out to grip Kevin’s forearm tightly and using his other hand to turn Kevin’s face towards his own, “Kevin, we’re leaving. Okay? We’re going home. Let’s go.” 

 

Neil turned to leave but then paused to look at Nicky, “I’ll call you once we have an answer.”  

 

They were out of the back room and past Matt and Dan quickly, Neil shouted a quick “goodbye” to the pair before they were out and back onto the street. 

Kevin wasn’t doing much better in the car. 

 

Neil climbed into the back with him and the door was barely closed before Andrew was pulling out of his spot and back down the road. Kevin didn’t seem to be doing too well in a closed space. But he wasn’t stable enough to pull off a portal spell and the last time Neil tried, they ended up 5 miles south of where they actually wanted. 

 

Andrew had turned the AC up and Neil kept the cool air blowing around the car. 

 

He leaned his back against the cool window and reached out for Kevin, who flinched. Neil carefully wrapped his hand around his arm, felt the skin burn his hand, but pulled Kevin back and in between his legs anyways. Slumped along the length of the back seat with his head against Neil’s chest, his heart continued to beat furiously in his chest. Breaths escaped his lips in short frantic bursts.  

 

He kept his arms tight around Kevin and his lips at his ear, taking him through the breathing exercises they’d found worked during these times. Finally it seemed like something might be helping, because by the time the five minutes car ride was over Kevin’s heart had slowed, if only somewhat, and he wasn’t breathing as harshly. Kevin seemed eager to clamber out the small space that was the maserati and once he was out Neil followed with Andrew at his back. 

 

When they got into the apartment, Kevin made a beeline for the small study room they kept. Filled with everything they’d collected for their use, from the spell books that Kevin wrote in the margins of to the enchanted items they used when occasion called for, it was undoubtedly his favorite place in the apartment. 

 

Instead of following, Neil scooped Sir Fat Cat McCatterson up from the floor before he could dart out the door, given that the demons were there of their own accord Neil thought they were doing it just to laugh when Neil chased after them, and cradled him to his chest. 

 

Neil had found that in times like these, Kevin often wanted to be left alone. He wanted the safety and security that came with being around Andrew and Neil, but he also wanted the space to sort through the memories that suffocated him. 

 

Bringing him home where he could curl up in the armchair in the study room that Andrew used when he was in there to make sure the other two didn’t blow themselves up and surround himself with the traces of Neil’s magic that covered the walls and leaving him to his own devices was the best way to give him everything he needed. 

 

“How is he?” Neil questioned as Andrew stepped into the apartment, closing the door shut behind him. 

 

Andrew’s gaze flicked briefly to the calico in Neil’s arms before focusing back on the hallway Kevin had disappeared down. He answered, “Heartbeats still up, but it’s not getting worse anymore. I’ll check in on him in a few minutes just to make sure.”

 

“Alright.” 

 

Andrew slipped out of his shoes and made his way to the living room. Neil followed his lead. 

 

Neither of them spoke until they were settled. Andrew was sitting on the couch, his back against the arm and his legs stretched out in front of him, with the remote in his hand as he surfed through the channels on the TV. Neil sat in the armchair a few feet away, petting the cat in his lap. 

 

“You know,” Neil said, folding his legs under him as he spoke, “I think we should take the job.”

 

“Is that so?” Andrew drawled. There was no visible sign that Andrew was interested in the conversation, but Neil knew he had his attention. 

 

“Yes,” Neil said, turning his gaze from the cat in his lap to the blonde, “we can’t let that asshole dictate where we do and don’t go. And the Moriyama can’t get their hands on this. The last thing we need is them having the ability to control demons.” 

 

“And when Kevin has another breakdown?” asked Andrew. His voice was still full of boredom and disinterest, but Neil wasn’t fooled. 

 

“We’ll put him back together.” said Neil, as he looked that Andrew. He wasn’t looking back, but the slight turn of his body and the tilt of his head gave him away. Not that anyone, other then Kevin, would be able to tell. “But Kevin needs to not be so afraid from him. He doesn’t have to be anymore.” 

 

“Kevin doesn’t know how to associate anything besides fear with Riko.” Andrew said, “You can’t expect him to get rid of that so quickly. 

 

“I’m not,” Neil replied, ”I want him to try though. I want him to trust that we wouldn’t let Riko hurt him. And fuck him if he can’t believe that.” 

 

Andrew head did a slight bob, that could probably be taken as a nod, “Oh Neil, you might actually be gaining some intelligence.” 

 

Neil sorted, typical Andrew.

 

If he didn’t know better he might actually be insulted. 

 

But he did know better. 

 

Andrew and Neil had clashed almost as much as he and Kevin had in the beginning. Where Kevin was quick to criticize everything that Neil did, and question his competence in magic, Andrew tested his boundaries. He asked questions that had tested his patience and almost sent Neil running. 

 

Neil wondered, if only for split second, where and what he would be right now if he hadn’t stayed. He banished the thoughts quickly, not wanting to think of the alternative life he could be living now. 

 

Neil had opened his mouth to push his point, the fact that Andrew hadn’t already shut him down was a miracle, when he felt in shift in the air. Things were a little too hot, the air was little too thick. 

 

Andrew straightened up from his slouched position on the couch.

 

Andrew seemed content to just listen for a minute before he climbed to his feet. 

 

Neil set the cat back on the ground before following after him. 

 

The apartment had a pretty open floor plan. The living room and kitchen were one large room with a half wall separating them. There was a hallway in the back of them that lead to the bedroom, bathroom, and study room. The bedroom was to the far left, while the study room was on the far right. 

 

When they’d bought the apartment, the realtor had proposed the study room as the master bedroom but they’d unanimously agreed to use the smaller room instead. With Kevin’s ever growing collection of magical tomes and all of the items they picked up on jobs, it had made more sense to use the biggest room in the house for that instead of sleeping. 

 

Andrew pushed into the room ahead of Neil. 

 

There was a noticeable temperature change between the hallway and the study room. Though it was a clear sign that Kevin was freaking out, Neil found himself a little relieved. If Kevin had managed to contain most of the heat to the one room, then at least his control hadn’t totally slipped yet. 

 

Kevin and Neil both had magic that was an inherent part of them. They’d both been taught when they were young that their magic was a part of them, not just a tool for their usage. It was as much as piece of them as the heart beating in their chests or the blood pumping through their veins. It was easy for them to use and a lot of the time they didn’t have to think about it much. 

 

While Neil controlled his magic just as easily as he used it, Kevin had never had the same experience. His control had been tied to Riko and the pain inflicted by the Praelia for so long that he still struggled to reign it in by himself. 

 

“Enough,” Andrew declared. His voice rang through the room, strong and commanding. “You’re turning the whole apartment into an oven.”

 

“I don’t care,” Kevin said. He was sitting in the armchair by the window that Andrew sat in on the occasions when he wanted to make sure they weren’t going to blow themselves up or that they were actually going to eat dinner instead of wearing themselves down until they couldn’t stand. He wasn’t looking at Andrew or Neil, focused instead on one of the bookshelves in the room. Neil could see his eyes darting across the titles, taking in the different words and languages. He wondered how many of the books on that shelf were ones that Kevin had brought with him when he’d left Riko.

 

"We're not taking the job,” Kevin said, his voice clipped strained. “If we see him and he tells me to go back. I won’t be able to say no.” 

 

“So don’t say anything. Let Neil do the talking for you. He talks enough for the two of us anyway,” said Andrew. He moved towards Kevin crouching slightly and grabbing his chin between his fingers. He forced his gaze away from the shelves and onto himself. “If you can’t trust yourself, trust us. Trust the promise I’ve made you.” 

 

There was a shift in the air. Just as the Praelia were carefully attuned to their mages, it was the same for them, and Neil felt more than heard the fierceness of Andrew's words. 

 

“He thinks you’re weak. He thinks he’s better than you,” Neil said causing Kevin’s gaze to move from Andrew and towards him. “Show him how wrong he is, Kevin. Show him that you’re stronger without him, that you’re stronger with us.” 

 

“You’re going to get us all killed,” said Kevin but his voice was tainted with annoyance rather than fear.

 

“What’s life without a little risk?” said Andrew, stepping back from Kevin but hauling him out of the chair with a firm grip on his arm. 

 

“Safer,” said Kevin, making to leave the study and trying hard to look at certain parts of shelves. “Longer as well.” 

 

“Where’s the fun in that?” said Neil as he followed the other two out of the room.

 

When they made it back to living room, Andrew announced that they were going to watch a movie. Kevin suggested a documentary on the history of teleportation magic and Andrew just gave him a bored stare. Kevin huffed but sat down, King Fluffkins followed as he went. 

 

It turned out that Andrew’s idea of a watching a movie was to start a Harry Potter marathon. 

 

Neil settled in. This series was horribly magically flawed and he and Kevin were going to make sure Andrew knew just how wrong they were. 

* * *

Neil stepped out onto the balcony, shutting the door behind him with his hands so it wouldn’t make too much noise.

 

It was deep enough into the night that the sky was an inky black above him. He let the natural breeze wash over him, swirling its way through the leaves on the trees and brushing along his face. The noise drifting up from the street below the apartment was jovial, but interspersed. It was surprised shrieks as heels caught in the cracks in the sidewalk as women stumbled home from the club and boys laughing riotously as they spoke about the game they’d been watching. 

 

This was what had made him fall in love with the apartment. 

 

The mornings were quiet filled with children walking to school and the nights were loud with the young adults of the city living their lives. It was the perfect contrast. It kept things from beings static and kept Neil from feeling like he needed to run. 

 

There were two chairs, made of dark red wood, with a table in between. Neil spent a good portion of his time out on the balcony since his magic reached naturally for the air and Andrew was out there with him often. Kevin didn’t usually come out onto the balcony for very long and when he did, he preferred to stand and keep an eye on the street. 

 

Neil settled into the chair he always used, the one to the right of the table, and pulled his phone from his pocket. 

 

He punched in Nicky’s number before settling back. 

 

The phone rang only twice before Nicky picked up with an enthusiastic, “Neil! Hey!”

 

“Hey,” Neil greeted. He spoke softly. Kevin and Andrew  (although he’d probably already woken Andrew when he eased himself out of bed)   were asleep inside and though he doubted his voice was enough to wake them, he wasn’t going to take the chance. “How was your lunch with Erik?”

 

And Nicky was off, telling Neil everything there was to know about his dinner. The lighting in the restaurant which was apparently very romantic, the waitress who wouldn’t stop flirting with Erik - “Do you think Andrew would kill her for me?”-, the lasagna that was “mouth watering good” and the chocolate moose, and that Andrew would probably love it, well as much as Andrew loved anything. 

 

“Listen, Nicky,” Neil said, cutting in before Nicky went on about this clothing store he’d found.“We’ll take the job."

 

“How'd you convince Kevin?” asked Nicky. Neil knew he was waggling his eyebrows, ”Sexual favors?"

 

Neil rolled his eyes, “No, Nicky.” 

 

“Dammit,” Nicky said annoyed at the let down, “and here I thought I’d get to hear something juicy.” 

 

There was a small clicking noise and the slight whoosh of air as a door was pushed open. It was Andrew he leaned on the wall briefs tight around his thighs and slung sinfully low on his hips. Neil licked his lips, a familiar sense of warmth string in the pit of stomach. At that moment, his own briefs felt a little too tight. 

 

Andrew raised an eyebrow at him, to which Neil mouthed Nicky back him. He wasn’t even paying attention to what Nicky was saying anymore, Andrew had managed to capture his full attention. This wasn’t something new, in the beginning (especially in the beginning) Neil had always devoted part of his attention to tracking Andrew wherever he went. 

 

Andrew moved then reaching over to pluck the phone right out of Neil’s hands. Neil could still hear Nicky’s chattering when Andrew raised the phone to his ear. 

 

“Bye Nicky,” said Andrew. He ended the call tossing the phone onto the other chair, before moving towards Neil. He bent low until he was level with Neil, his breath ghosting across his ear making him shiver and breathed, “Yes or no.” 

 

“Fuck yes.” It was a gasp, a pant or maybe even a moan, but Neil didn’t care how desperate he sounded. Andrew had made it clear long ago the line they couldn’t cross. 

 

And they only were kissing, and Neil already felt breathless, a feeling that wasn’t easy to accomplish with him. Andrew’s mouth was hungry against his own, as if it could swallow him whole, and Neil wouldn’t object to that. There was a sharp nip at his bottom lip, and the moan that made gave Andrew the space he needed to push his tongue into the warm wetness that was Neil’s mouth. 

 

Neil wasn’t aware of much outside of the other mouth latched onto his own, but somehow they’d moved from their awkwardly hunched positioned to Neil’s back being pressed against the wall. Despite the few inch height difference their hips lined up almost perfectly and Andrew caught him slightly off guard when he ground his growing erection against Neil’s own. 

 

Neil hissed, “Ah fuck, A-Andrew.” His fingers scrabbled against the wall as he knew better than to touch Andrew without his permission. 

 

Hands trailed down from their bruising grip on his face, down towards the plains of his chest. They paused to circle his nipples, causing Neil’s hips to canter forward and a broken moan to escape his lips, only to be swallowed by the blonde. His hands moved on sliding down the plains of his abdomen and down the towards the waistband of his Jeans. 

 

Andrew pulled his lips back from Neil’s long to ask once more, "Yes or no?” 

 

Neil tried to glare at him, but the pulsing in his dick made it impossible to get too worked up, “Don’t ask stupid questions.” 

 

“Shut up,” Andrew bit back. 

 

Neil smiled. “Make me.”

 

He did, with furious strokes of his hand and skilled fingers flicked over a slit. At this point Neil wasn’t capable of anything other than breathy moans and and panting breaths and broken “Andrew’s” over and over until he came undone in Andrew’s with a hand. 

 

Neil was still breathing heavily when Andrew leaned forward his head, resting against Neil’s shoulder as he made quick work of himself. He spilled a second mess into his hand which, once he caught his breath, he wiped carelessly onto Neil’s stomach. 

 

He stepped back then and lifted his head to stare at Neil. 

 

“You should clean that up before you come back to bed. We wouldn’t want to get the sheets dirty.” 

 

Then he was moving back into the apartment, leaving a scowling Neil behind. 

 

Despite the mess, Neil stayed still for a few moments. He shut his eyes and felt the breeze brush over his sensitive, overheated, skin. Andrew’s abrupt departure didn’t really bother him much. Things with Andrew were usually like that, quick and a little rougher, while things with Kevin were usually slower and more gentle. When the three of them were all together it balanced out in a way that drove Neil absolutely crazy.    
  


When he was ready, he took a breath and pushed himself to his feet. 

 

Entering the bedroom, he could see that Andrew had already climbed back into bed with Kevin. Andrew was against the wall, his back pressed to it, and a few inches of space separated him from Kevin. There was room on Kevin’s other side for Neil when he was ready. 

 

Andrew’s eyes were closed, but Neil could tell that he was still awake. Kevin was asleep, his face smoothed out with an ease that was never there when he was up. 

 

Neil looked at them for a moment. 

 

He didn’t think he’d made the wrong call when it came to taking the job, not when Andrew hadn’t argued, but he couldn’t help worrying just a bit. 

 

Kevin had come so far and that was before considering the process he’d made before Neil had entered his and Andrew’s life. Neil wasn’t lying when he’d told Andrew he would piece Kevin back together if something happened, but that didn’t mean Neil wanted to see someone he loved in pieces to begin with. 

 

“Stop staring,” Andrew said, his voice ringing through the room. “Go take a shower.”

 

“I’m going,” Neil said, turning away from them. “I’m going.”

 

Neil quietly padded to the bathroom and stripped off briefs quickly. He showered quickly, spending just enough time to wash his body and avoided getting his hair wet. 

 

Exhaustion crept up on him. He toweled himself off just as quickly and tossed his briefs into the hamper they kept in the bathroom. He shut the light off before he slipped back into the hall and padded back to the bedroom. 

 

He saw Andrew raise his head slightly off the bed to quirk an eyebrow at his nakedness, to which Neil’s mouth slid into a tired lazy smile. 

 

“Stop staring.” 

 

Andrew flipped him off before settling back into the bed, and Neil moved to slide in next to Kevin who was still oblivious the world. 


End file.
